Repercussions
by FrenchieLeigh
Summary: When a team of freelancers are decieved and innocent lives are lost, Levi shoulders the blame, spiraling into a whirlwind of guilt, regret, and self destruction. Clinging to love and hope, Petra devotes herself to pulling him from the edge, but they both learn that some wounds, once infected, become dangerous and in their case, deadly. AU: Modern Day
1. In Need of a Savior

**Author's Note: **Because who doesn't need a dark and gritty survivor Rivetra AU in their life?

Have some **warnings** for this fic: drug &amp; alcohol abuse, assault, language (though it's Levi so no one is surprised), violence, and death all around.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own any of the official Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan characters.

**Repercussions**

It was past midnight when Petra climbed up the stairs to Levi's apartment. She didn't know how he had ended up here; the walls were covered in dirt and grime accumulated since the building had been built, which was probably sometime in the 1920's, Lights flickered on and off, on and off, on and off, and the wooden bannister she gripped as her boots hit the stair treads wobbled beneath her small fingers.

A roach scurried across the back of her hand and she paused, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. She hated coming here but she couldn't help herself. They were the only two left. They needed each other.

She imagined he needed her now especially. He hadn't answered any of her phone calls or text messages for the past day and a half, so, knowing exactly how she would find him, Petra stuffed some ibuprofen (a heavy dosage she had stolen from the doctor she lived above) into her bag and headed a few blocks down the street into the dreary, rat infested neighborhood where Levi Ackerman had settled down.

He didn't answer when she knocked on the door, peeling from the different colours it had been painted over the decades, and this didn't surprise her. It was locked, of course, so she slid her key into the handle and let herself in.

She was met with absolute silence and swallowing the heavy lump in her throat, she closed the door gently behind her.

"Levi?" It was a small, timid call, as if she were afraid to startle him. He didn't respond and she took a step forward, through the small hallway at the entrance and into the living room.

He wasn't there, but it looked exactly as it had the last time she had been there, three days prior. There was no furniture, save a small round table where empty liquor bottles had been arranged to the degree of an art, and a line of fresh syringes lay in wait beside a silver tablespoon.

Petra grit her teeth and fought back the tears that threatened to destroy her composure.

"Why do you keep coming back?"

She lifted her honey gaze to his steely cobalt and licked her lips, a display of nerves. "Because I'm not going to leave you behind," she replied, taking a deep breath that shuddered in her lungs.

Leaning up against the doorframe to the bedroom, Levi let out a humorless laugh before tucking his bottle of gin under his arm in order to light up a cigarette. "Give it up, babe," he mumbled, "I'm a lost cause. Going down with the fucking ship."

"There's no such thing," she replied factually stepping forward and swiping the bottle from his hands. Turning it in her palm, she glanced back to the table. "You aren't using these. . .together, are you?"

"Of course not," he bit off, "I'm not stupid."

This relieved her, if only slightly. If he wasn't combining the drugs and alcohol there was still a part of him that clung to life. There was still a chance to pull him back from the edge, back to _her_.

"I know what you're thinking," he teased, pushing off the doorframe and reaching beneath her black leather jacket. He pulled one of her black pistols from its holster, pressing the muzzle to his temple. "If I'm going to die, why not just do it?"

"That's not what I'm thinking," she told him, setting the gin on the table and holding her hand out, unsurprised when he slapped the weapon back into her possession. She slipped it back into its home.

"I want you to come live with me," she said, "I want you to get out of this pit you call a home and let me help you. Let me fix you."

"Why?" he asked, raising a sardonic brow, "because we're so in love?"

Though she knew he was acting out of his own self pity, drowning in his failures, Petra stood her ground.

"Yes," she replied resolutely, "because we are in love."

"That nice slice you've got says otherwise," he said, snatching the bottle back from the table and taking a swig.

Her hand wandered up to her neck where she fingered the stitches there. The last time she had come here there had been an altercation. He hadn't been in his right mind, she had told herself, crouched in his kitchen, pressing her fingers against the bloody gash he had given her in order to prove a point. He wanted to scare her away, he wanted to be alone, to waste away into nothingness, but she refused to let him.

That day, he had been anxious, jittery and volatile. He had been drinking to push away the need for his next heroin fix, to keep the desire away just a bit longer. While he wasn't above turning to the drug to forget, he wasn't ready to submit himself to it entirely. It was dirty, and fucking expensive.

"We used to be happy," she whispered softly, "don't you remember?"

She did. It was strange that they had been able to find happiness, but they had, all of them. There were ten in total, traveling freelancers, gypsy criminals if you would, and together they had made a family.

She recalled the hours she had spent in Levi's arms in the soft light of mornings on the hotel balcony of a penthouse in Paris, the thrilling rides on the back of his motorbike through the English countryside, or lazy summer days spent together, all of them, picnicking on the cliffs of the Mediterranean.

But now, of the ten, it was only Petra and Levi inside a dark, rotting apartment in the slums of Baltimore, USA. It was the worst place to be, but Europe was no longer safe for them and they had retreated here.

_It's temporary_, he had told her. They had rented separate apartments lest someone come searching for either one of them, and their temporary move seemed to extend and extend and extend with each new bottle of liquor Levi opened, each cigarette he smoked, and each needle he jabbed into his veins.

Their escape had turned into his guilt trip and Petra had not been invited to join him.

"We used to be a lot of things," he replied, nodding the bottle towards her left hand where a modest band of gold wrapped around her slender ring finger, matching the one he bore on his own.

"Come home," she pleaded, "you're so much better than this."

He took a drag from the cigarette, turning his head to the side and exhaling before sliding his gaze over to her. "I let them all die, you know."

"No." The word was firm and absolute as it marched from her mouth, "No you didn't."

"They're all _dead_, Petra. Because of the choice _I_ made."

"It's not your fault, Levi," she protested, "there was nothing any of us could have done. You were trying to save innocent people."

"Yeah," he scoffed, taking another long drink from the clear bottle, "and I did a bangup job, didn't I?"

With her mouth turned down into a frown, Petra moved forward, yanking the liquor from his hands and throwing it across the room, soaking in the satisfaction as the glass exploded against the wall. She shoved her hand against his face, holding his chin and forcing him to look at her.

"_Shut up, captain_," she hissed. It was a stupid title, one they had made up for him, but she didn't care. She had followed his lead for years, she had devoted herself entirely to him and she would not stand for this behavior.

"This is _not_ where they would want us to be! Do you understand that? _Do you?_"

Her grip on him was rough. It hurt, and through his drunken fog he could make out her cute little eyebrows pulled down over her eyes, those fiery amber eyes that sparked when she was angry.

"They're not where they want to be either," he drawled in response, "so I'd say it's a fair trade."

She slapped him. Twice.

"Stop acting like you're the only one allowed to grieve, Levi. I was there too. I watched my friends, my family, those _kids_ die. _Auruo_ died _in my arms."_

"What was he doing there in the first place?"

Petra let out a small huff. He was being irrational. "Saving my life," she replied, "he protected me. He died so that I didn't have to."

Levi ground his teeth, reaching for his cigarette, "I never liked the way he looked at you."

She wasn't getting anywhere with him today. Over the past seven months he had built wall after wall after wall around his soul, or at least what was left of it. It had been a mistake to leave him alone for so long this time around. Three days had been too many.

"If nothing else," she said, "if my opinion doesn't matter, you should know that Hanji would be disappointed."

She shouldn't have stooped so low, but it was the trigger he needed to feel something. _Anything_. And that something was fury. His hands were on her. His palms slapped against her neck and she let out a pained cry as her wound protested the action. His fingers entangled themselves in her copper hair, his blunt fingernails digging into the back of her skull, and his thumbs pressed against her cheekbones so hard she thought they might shatter beneath her skin.

"Don't _ever_ speak her name again," he growled, pushing his wife onto her knees, falling to his own as he did so, his voice trembling as he struggled through his grief. "No one can ever speak her name again."

Through the pain, Petra waited. She could see it in his eyes, the way his eyebrows sank low over his lids, and the tears that glistened, but never fell. Hanji Zoe had been his first friend and for the majority of his life, the only person who had never given up on him. She had been thrilled when he announced his desire to wed the sweet, albeit much younger Petra and through her ridiculous antics, had fought until the very end to protect her family.

Her life had been cut short before the best of it had begun.

"_Hey, Levi!"_

_In the lobby of a magnificent castle hotel in Vienna, Levi turned, fixing his gaze on Mike Zakarius, the tallest (obscenely so) of their crew, his skills second only to Levi's own. He was seated at the bar, and when he shook the bottle of brandy he had acquired from the bartender, Levi took a seat beside him. _

_ "Waiting on Babydoll?" he wondered, pouring his much shorter comrade half a drink. Levi wasn't much for day drinking._

_ "Yeah," Levi responded, keeping his eyes focused on the grand staircase, "she's doing some nonsense with her hair."_

_ Mike let out a small chuckle and a shrug as he took a drink. "I wanted to talk to you about something. If you've got the time."_

_ Levi shot him a look that reminded him Petra was fixing her hair. They had time._

_ Brushing some of his own hair out of his eyes, Mike sat back, draping his arm over the back of his chair. "I want to talk about Hanji."_

_ With a look up from beneath the dark fringe that fell over his forehead, Levi threw his friend a tired look. "What has she done now?"_

_ "You're the closet thing she has to a father, Levi."_

_ This caught his attention. Pulling his glass forward, he pulled his brows down. "A three year age difference hardly gives me father qualifications."_

_ "Family then. We're all family, but you two…"_

_ "What the fuck are you getting at?" he snapped, wondering what was taking his wife so long. She'd just chopped all her hair off. How long did it take her to arrange it to go out to lunch?_

_ Reaching into the pocket of his mossy green dress shirt, Mike pulled out a velvet box and flicked it open, holding it out him._

_ "Flattering," Levi replied with a dull sort of humor, "but I'm already married."_

_ "For Hanji," Mike replied, setting the box down on the bar and admiring the ring inside. It was platinum with three red stones, modest in size but perfect in both cut and clarity. They weren't rubies, Levi knew Mike better than that. He wasn't the sort of man to take half-assed measures or efforts that were simply 'satisfactory'. Those were diamonds. Red diamonds._

_ "You know she'll spend more time studying those rocks than actually wearing them, right?"_

_ The corners of Mike's mouth tipped up as he put the ring back into his pocket. "Is that your blessing then?"_

_ Levi shrugged into his drink as he took a small sip, "if nothing else, it'll legitimize all your fucking."_

_ "I'll take care of her," Mike stated, throwing back the liquor with ease, "not that she needs it."_

_ "Neither does Petra," Levi pointed out. To anyone else it may have seemed like an offhanded, pointless remark, but Mike understood. Each one of the ten in their group was strong, far stronger in both physical strength and mental fortitude than any of the citizens that walked the streets. They didn't need caring for or looking after. Not Hanji, and not Petra. But Levi did so anyway, purely out of love. _

_ And now, it was Mike's turn. _

_ "Wait," Levi told him as he began to slide off the stool he had been seated at as Petra _finally_ made her way into the lobby, sporting half a waterfall braid (had it really taken so long to do something like that? Women.), "wait until after tonight. I can't have any of you clowns distracted."_

_ Mike waved him off, throwing a grin to the sunny copper haired girl. "Yeah, alright _captain_." _

_Levi didn't respond to the sarcastic title, pushing the empty glass towards the bartender and draping his arm over Petra's shoulder, steering his wife from the bar. Mike and Hanji, he considered, nodding to the doorman who straightened as the suited man and his woman strolled out of the foyer. It was about time. They'd be good for each other._

But they'd never gotten the chance.

In the dampness of his apartment, the fierce hold Levi had on Petra loosened. His hands fell away from her face and his arms collapsed around her shoulders, pulling her close. She brought her own hands up around his torso, rubbing his back with long, soothing strokes.

"I'm so sorry," he breathed, his forehead pressed into her shoulder, "God I am so fucking sorry."

She'd broken him, if only for a few moments, and she let out a breath of relief. He was living in a circle of emotions, a carousel of nightmares and Petra was desperate to tear the ride to pieces. He was guilty, she understood that. But it was too much for him. He couldn't cope, so he escaped. When she interfered with his misery, he lashed out, hurting her more often than not. She didn't mind fighting him; she was well versed in combat and though she loved him more than anything in the entire rotten world they lived in, she wasn't afraid to hurt him in return. When he was able to come to his senses, even just for an hour or so (three hours and twenty minutes was the most she had gotten from him), he was attacked by a new sort of grief. He would realize what he had done, how he had put his hands on her, his beautiful, sweet Petra and the cuts, bruises, and trails of eyeliner he had left in his wake. It killed him that he'd sunk to such a level of filth, and it absolutely gutted him that after all of it, she still believed that somewhere inside of him was the man she had married.

When that became too much, he would get high, and it would begin again.

"It's alright," she whispered, bringing her fingers up into his hair. It was clean and she almost smiled. He was still bathing regularly. Whether it was a good sign or simply that his cleanliness would never change, she didn't know, but found comfort in it.

"Nothing is fucking alright, Petra."

"But it will be," she pressed, keeping her voice soft and her touch gentle, "we're still alive, and we're still together. I'll always fight for you. _Alongside_ you. You know that."

With a heavy sigh, he lifted himself from her, sitting back up against the wall. There were dark circles around his eyes, darker than she had ever seen them. He was having nightmares again.

Petra scooted along the ugly industrial carpeting that covered his floor and joined him, slipping her fingers between his and resting her head on his shoulder.

"Look," she said, holding up their hands. Running from the base of her thumb to her wrist was a tattoo, one wing, outlined in black. On his hand, the other, coloured in a steely blue that matched his eyes remarkably well. On each of theirs, at the very bottom, was one feather in the colour of the other's and when their hands were clasped together, they made a pair.

"You told me these were our wings," she reminded him quietly, "our wings of freedom. How can either of us fly with just one?"

"I was responsible for their lives," he sighed, squeezing her hand, "and I failed."

"You didn't."

"I did. I couldn't save anyone."

Her breath rattled in her lungs when she exhaled. "You saved one."

_You saved me._

He wanted to say it didn't matter, what was one life? But he couldn't dismiss her like that. Of course he had saved her. Even if he hadn't, she would have been the person he tried the hardest to protect. Love had made him biased. His focus on his wife had left him unable to sacrifice himself as he should have.

"We should have died with them."

Petra swallowed, lifting her head and resting it against the wall, staring ahead at the archway that led to the kitchen. The refrigerator had been left ajar and the light cast a haunting glow on the entire space.

"We were blessed with life, Levi. To reject that would be like. . .it would be like they died in vain."

"You know what we did, Petra." He was getting jittery again. "Why they all died."

"Levi, we didn't do it. He did."

"But we couldn't stop it," he bit off, "so really what difference does it make?"

She lowered her lashes, raising their hands and kissing the place where their tattoos joined. "Shhh. . ." she murmured. He needed to stay calm.

"We blew up a high school."

"Levi—"

He turned to her and she could almost see the lump in his throat. His mouth twitched and his hand was trembling in her grasp. When he spoke again, his voice was little more than a hoarse whisper, one perhaps anyone else would not have been able to hear.

"We blew up. . .a high school."

As she watched the words slip from his mouth, her lip quivered and the tears she had been holding back spilled down her cheeks as she replied, her own voice cracking at the words.

"I know."

**xxxx**

**Author's Note**: Well that was heavy. I hope you were able to enjoy reading it~

Like Honey &amp; Spice, this was supposed to be a oneshot and then it just kept growing. I'm hoping the next chapter will complete this story, but no promises!


	2. Where Things Went Wrong

**Author's Note: **Mike and Nanaba siblings because what cuties.

**Disclaimer**: I do not own any of the official Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan characters.

**Repercussions**

"Ayyy, it's about time you came back!"

Hanji Zoe let the teasing comment burst through her lips as she fitted her comrade, one Erwin Smith, with his holster. He did his best to brush her away with a playful swat, but with only one arm, it was easier for her to dart out of his way. He didn't need help anymore, he always tried to protest, but she was an old friend and wouldn't take no for an answer.

The man who had walked through the door, a blonde with a kind face and his hair tied back, gave Hanji a sheepish grin.

"She was wishing me good luck," he replied, crossing the penthouse suite to join his friends Gunther Shultz and Auruo Bossard in preparing their weapons for the night's mission.

"For two hours?" This time it was Mike Zakarius who spoke, his soft spoken brother Nanaba beside him, giving little input on the matter of Erd Gin and the waitress he was currently dallying with.

Erd gave the group a shrug and a grin. He should have expected this.

"Well I think it's cute," Petra chimed in, holding one of her black pistols up to the light, wrinkling her nose at the new scratch she noticed on it, then bringing it back down to polish, "it's not often we're in a place long enough to make friends outside the family. Besides, she's really pretty."

From his place between Erwin (who had finally managed to shoo Hanji away) and Moblit Berner, Levi stood reviewing the blueprints for their raid.

"Let's just get through this," he sighed, "the sooner we complete this mission, the sooner we can come back here." His eyes flicked to meet Mike's and they shared a knowing glance. It wouldn't do to keep the man's fiancee-to-be waiting.

"Ayo Captain what are you in such a hurry for?"

Levi stepped away from the table, shrugging on his own holster, addressing Auruo as he checked his ammunition.

"I'd like children before I'm an old man," he replied simply, "can't have kids if you don't make 'em."

The sound of the magazine slamming into the grip of Petra's pistol silenced the entire room's giggles, 'ooooh's, and other noises that suggested they found the couple's physical intimacies entertaining.

"Levi," she huffed, slamming her weapon into its place at her ribs, "a little discretion. Please."

He gave her a look that suggested he planned on being anything _but_ discreet when they returned and she shook it off with a smile. Tonight's job would be a special one, a grand show of things with more bounty than any client had offered before. They'd live like kings from here on out, even more so than they already did.

While she cleaned her weapon and checked her gear, Petra took a moment to admire her family, everyone working together inside the enormous suite she and Levi had booked for the month.

There was Erwin Smith who spearheaded their operation alongside Levi. She quickly learned that where Levi was biting, cunning, and fearless, Erwin was far more rational, calm, and collected. He worked intelligence and details with the ever cheeky Hanji Zoe and Moblit Berner, a man who never seemed far from Hanji's side for fear the woman might blow herself up.

For science.

The brothers Mike and Nanaba were quiet men, observers more than anything, though Mike was quick with a lewd joke given the opportunity. He was also the stronger of the two, rivaling Levi in his marksmanship. Their specialty was security, particularly the breaching of, granting their team a safe entrance to wherever their crimes may take them that night.

Then there were the boys. The Unholy Trinity, as Petra affectionately called them. Gunter Shultz was a silent thief, with quick hands, deep pockets, and a distinct eye for value. Erd Gin was the confidence man, his silver tongue able to coax a trust fund into his hands or a bored heiress into his bed, but his sweet demeanor vindicating him every single time. Lastly, Auruo Bossard. Of all the members of their family, he was the thug. The intimidator. He'd been cursed with a weathered face that he often used to his advantage when things went sour. He wasn't afraid to carry out the threats he so often made, but rarely had to.

Petra was the youngest, and newest member of the family. She'd joined eight years prior, when she had been but fifteen. She'd been a delinquent herself then, busting car windows with a baseball bat in search of anything that might fetch a price, and picking the pockets of those who were unfortunate enough to display their wealth through their clothes.

Erd Gin had been one such man, and had he not been in the game himself, she might have gotten away with it. He admired her spunky attitude and instead of punishing her as he may have a thuggish little boy, presented her to Levi with the request they take her off the streets and teach her to work like a real lady ought to.

The spark in her eyes amused Levi and he was unable to deny the potential Erd presented to him. He admitted her under Erd's care, requiring that she prove herself useful before securing her place in the family.

Four years later, he married her.

**xxxx**

Hanji's grip on the steering wheel was casual as she zipped around the streets of Vienna, the light of the streetlamps passing over the interior of the car every few seconds.

"So," she started, looking to Levi next to her, seated in the passenger seat, his face bored and uninterested in their destination, "kids."

"Yeah," was his solid response.

He didn't seem to be very interested in conversation about it, but Hanji wasn't going to let him drop a bomb like that on their group without explanation.

"You never mentioned anything about kids. Neither of you did."

Levi shrugged. "Well I'm thirty-something years old." At least he thought he was in his thirties. He'd never known his birthdate, not that it mattered much to someone who, according to any government records, didn't exist.

"This isn't really the life to be raising a baby in though," she pressed, "surely Petra knows that too."

"Yep."

Hanji swallowed. Very rarely did Levi avoid conversation in this manner. With a sigh, she tapped on the steering wheel. "Well then that sounds to me like you're planning on retiring."

"Maybe I am."

"_Levi."_

He shrugged again, resting his head against the window. "Maybe we all should."

**xxxx**

With the Zakarius brothers taking the lead, deactivating the security system of Vienna's most prestigious private academy, the crew of freelancers made their way inside. Filing into a classroom, they set their bags on the desks, congratulating themselves on such a successful entrance, and waiting for Erwin to give his review.

The mission had potential to be a dangerous one. There would be a black market auction in twenty minutes, in the auditorium on the other side of the school. Their orders were to shut it down, confiscate the goods, and turn them in to their client. It was a high risk job, and where the risk went up, so did the cost. Their client, K, seemed to have no issue with paying the agreed upon two million Euro per person.

"Petra."

Petra looked up from her phone, having been tracking the local police and their whereabouts. As promised, nary an officer within five miles.

"I want you to do a quick sweep of the corridor," Erwin told her, "verify a clear path. We will follow."

"Of course," she agreed, sliding her phone into her back pocket and hopping off the student desk she had perched herself on.

The halls were quiet, and strange to her. She'd dropped out of High School her first year, right after both her parents were killed. The only education she had gotten after she had joined up with Levi had been on-the-job, random tidbits of information they tossed around in their free time, or from books she read.

She didn't mind not having an education, very few of them had completed high school, and only Erwin and Hanji had completed college (all while working in the underground, which Petra found to be most impressive). Her lifestyle required very little of history, chemistry, or complex mathematics. She was a woman of action.

The boots she wore tonight were flat soled, rubber bottoms, and made not the sharp click of a woman on a mission, but the soft, almost silent whisper of a person who had no reason to trust the environment around them.

A voice caused her to pause her walk, reaching behind her, her palm resting on the gun in the holster at her hip. Another chimed in and she took a deep breath. There were other people here, and that didn't bode well for either party. Though she couldn't make out the words, as she inched closer to the source, she took note of their jovial tones, a laugh here, and a scoff there. It wasn't likely they were involved in anything that was about to happen in this building.

With her back pressed against the wall, Petra pulled the pistol from the holster, pressing it to her forehead. If she was lucky, she wouldn't have to shoot anyone. She could take some hostages, then conveniently pay them off once she was through with what had to be done. They'd done it many times before.

"Yeah!" Came a cheery voice from around the corner, "I'll get it; I'll be right back!"

If she had heard the statement twelve seconds prior, she knew right then that the night would have progressed differently. If she had just _waited_, they may have left.

But she hadn't.

They were on a schedule, and as it stood, there was no time to wait. It was hostages or bodies and she wasn't the type to leave a trail of innocent victims in her wake. Not even for two million Euro.

So, with a deep inhale for luck, she took four long strides forward, raised her pistol, and rounded the corner.

All the voices stopped then.

Standing before her, completely at her mercy, was a teenage boy, a tiny blonde thing, only an inch or so taller than herself. His eyes went wide, and despite her tough and unfeeling career, so did hers. But she didn't falter.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, "this school is supposed to be empty."

Behind him, his peers had stopped, all of them unsure of what to do.

"I—I. . ." he trembled, his blue eyes quivering with fear, his muscles unable to move. "My name is Armin Arlert, ma'am. Please don't kill me."

"Why are you _here_?"

It didn't matter why he was there, really it didn't. There were more than just him and even though she had a weapon, Petra knew that in her confusion, it wouldn't be difficult for them to take control of the situation.

Armin looked to the gun, but Petra kept her stance. She wouldn't take any chances. He swallowed. "We. . .we just came back from a school trip."

She cursed inwardly. Could she take this many hostages? How many _were_ there?

Tossing eight years of professionalism and quick thinking to the wind, she pulled the phone from her pocket, never taking her eyes off the blonde before her, and called Levi. He would have the answer she couldn't find.

"What."

Levi's voice on the other line sounded nothing short of salvation. Petra's hand shook as the boy on the muzzle side of her pistol trembled beneath it. He couldn't have been any older than fifteen if he was a day.

"There are children here," she nearly whispered, her eyes darting through the corridor, silently counting them all, frozen in their places from loading up backpacks and lockers, limbs locked in terror.

"_What._"

"Children," she repeated, "there are _kids_ in this school. I am pointing my weapon at a student!"

She heard him curse and the blonde in front of her let out a soft whimper. "Please don't kill me, ma'am."

"Levi what do I do?"

This building was supposed to be empty, save the black market auction in the auditorium. It was nearing nine o'clock at night, not a time for students to be wandering around, and not in a group this large.

Levi didn't respond, and as she watched the seconds tick by on the call screen, she felt her heart race at three times the speed. She felt her entire body flush, a reaction to anxiety she hadn't felt in years. Something wasn't right.

"Levi, please."

Still, there was no response. The boy at her mercy began to cry and a pretty black haired girl wrapped in a red scarf caught her eye. With a fearless march, she started forward.

"I can't kill children," she told her husband, her voice escalating in both tone and volume, "Levi I won't murder _children!_"

Silence.

"Captain _please!_" she cried into the phone, re-aiming the pistol at the girl. She didn't want to shoot her. Oh _God_ she didn't want to hurt these poor things. "Captain tell me what to do!"

But she would follow orders.

Before Levi had the chance to answer, the loudspeaker crackled and Petra's attention was directed up into the ceiling.

"Ah," came a deep voice over the intercom system, "Petra Ral. No. I'm sorry, Petra _Ackerman_."

This time, she lowered the pistol. Armin collapsed to the floor, his limbs shaking as the girl gathered him into her arms, glaring up at Petra.

"Who are you?" Petra asked, though she was unsure if it was a two way system.

"You know me as K," the voice replied, "I'm the guy who's gonna make you rich."

_K was here?_ This was doing little to soothe her anxiety and with a slow movement, she pressed the 'speaker' button on her phone so Levi could hear.

"Why are you here? What do you want with me?"

"I've got nothin' against _you_, darlin'. After all, you married my nephew. We're family."

Levi swore aloud, so loudly in fact that when it came through her end of the phone, Petra jumped. Had he _known_?

"I'll be honest with you, babe," K went on, "My name is Kenny. Kenny Ackerman. Your little sugar daddy there's old lady was my sister. Everything he taught you, I taught him.

"He's got a cute little operation going on with his band of freaks, but it's about time he came home."

"I won't have any part of this," Levi growled, "tell him to go fuck a goat."

"I'm afraid he doesn't _want _to come home, _uncle_," she replied sweetly, smirking up at the ceiling, "we're quite happy."

"Eh, I thought he might say that, so I've come prepared."

Knowing there were cameras on her, Petra shifted her weight, crossing her arms and glaring upwards, inviting the faceless Kenny to issue his challenge.

"There's a meeting in the auditorium tonight, but it ain't the black market. It's the board and patrons of this academy. Real uppity type, high society folk. Their brats are standin' right before you.

"So you got a choice. Y'all can go in and take out the board. I'll pay you your share. All of you, as promised."

The uncomfortable shifting of the teens before her caused Petra to back down. He wanted her, and her family, to kill these kids' parents? For what?

"Or," he continued, "you can kill the kids. I understand that's a little harder what with your sweet little soul, so you'll all get _double _what I promised."

Trying not to show the terror coursing through her veins, Petra stood tall. "You deceived us," she hissed, "you set us up."

Kenny chuckled into the mic, "some people die, and some people get rich. Which one will you be, sweet pea?"

"You want us to kill children." The words marched from her mouth a hollow and empty fact.

"I want you to do what you want to do. It's just a matter of the prize you wanna get at the end of it. It's what your knight in shining armor has been teaching you to do all along, isn't it?"

"No," she whispered. They weren't murderers. Not in their cores. Sure, she'd killed people. They all had. But not like this.

"We'll be watching you," he went on, "and if you try to leave before the job is done, you and anyone you try to bring with you will die. And just to prove it ain't a bluff—"

She caught sound of the soft pop of a silenced bullet whizzing by her head, but before she could think, it drove itself into the head of one of the students, blasting away half of his face. As he crumpled to the floor, dead, no one moved.

"As I said. No bluffing. You have three hours."

There was a click as the intercom was shut off and Petra raised the phone to her face. "Levi."

"Get back here. _Now_."

"_Marco!_" Released of his shock, a tall boy with sharp features threw himself down at the floor, pulling the dead student into his arms. "Marco. . ."

Armin began to cry again and a frenzied panic rose up within the group as they tried to make sense of their situation amongst themselves.

"Levi what do we do."

"You _bitch!_" This time a green eyed boy stepped forward, fury on his features. The girl in the scarf held out her hand, halting him and when Petra locked eyes with him, he snarled at her.

"Report to me."

"These kids, Levi, I—we can't just leave them here!"

"Petra. Calm down. We're not killing kids. Bring them with you."

He ended the call there and she closed her eyes, taking a calming breath. She'd never be able to get their attention if she wasn't in control of herself.

"Listen to me!" Her words resonated throughout the hall, silencing the panicked chatter of the teenagers before her and she relaxed her shoulders. Good. "I'm not going to kill you. No one is. But I need you to come with me."

A petite blonde girl stepped forward, along with what looked to be a couple, a girl with a bag of potato chips in her hand and a boy with a shaved head who looked like in any other situation he would have cracked a joke.

"Are you kidding me?" The boy holding his dead friend jerked up his head, glowering at his classmates, "Marco is _dead_ because of her!"

The brunette gripped her chip bag tightly, inhaling with a shaky breath. "What else are we supposed to do, Jean?"

Petra reached out her hand, happy when the blonde girl took it. She gave her a reassuring smile, pulling her to her side and reaching out for the others.

Jean looked around as all his friends began to move to Petra's side. "You expect us to just trust this broad?! She's mental!"

When the scarfed girl squared her shoulders and stepped forward, he dropped his jaw. "You too, Mikasa?"

She turned to him, looking down through her lowered lashes. "We won't get anything done sitting in the hallway, Jean. Don't be stupid. Let's go."

"My husband will know what to do," Petra sighed as she led the students towards the room she and her family had set up base.

Inside, the group was silent as the teenagers filed in. They saw their pale faces, their anger, their grief, and their confusion. Instinctively, the youths sat at the desks, afraid to do much else, eyeing the weapons the older men and women were carrying.

It was Mike Zakarius who spoke first.

"You're gonna be okay," he told them, his gentle voice contrasting with his threatening build.

"We have to split up." Though Levi felt sympathetic towards these children, they didn't have time to coddle them.

Hanji looked to him. "What are you thinking?"

He took a moment, staring down at the floor, arms crossed over his chest.

"Erd, Gunther, Nanaba. You'll go to the auditorium. Guard the patrons there."

The three men nodded in affirmation and Levi lifted his head. "Petra, Auruo, and Moblit. You take these brats down into the basement. Keep them out of sight, keep them together."

Petra crossed her arms. "What are the rest of you doing?"

Levi pulled one of his pistols from it's holster, cocking it. Once he left this room, it would be a battlefield.

"We're taking out Kenny."

Hanji, Mike, and Erwin didn't even bat an eyelash at the indirect command. They didn't have time for Erwin or Hanji to come up with a plan of action, so they were going to trust Levi and his raw strength. Petra couldn't say she was comfortable with that choice, but she didn't see an alternative.

"I'm coming with you!"

Their attention was turned to the green eyed boy. He had risen from his seat, his eyes aflame with determination, "I'm going to wipe them all out!"

Levi blinked once, then turned away, "It's not a sport, kid. Lay low like you're told."

"I'm not going to let my parents get killed. I'm going to fight too!"

"Eren, please," Armin pleaded from the seat beside his friend.

But he didn't back down. He slammed his fists down on the desktop, demanding Levi's attention. "I'm _going with you_."

"Can you shoot?"

"Yes."

It was an answer that Levi hadn't expected.

Mikasa Ackerman stood. "If Eren is going, so am I. I'm stronger than he is, with better aim."

The rest of the class began to stand, each vying for a spot on the team. They were terrified; it was written on their faces, but it was their parents they'd be protecting, and there was no bond stronger than family. Levi's frown deepened with each voice that was added to the mix. He wasn't about to throw away these kids' lives.

Mike scanned the students, pointing at a hulking blonde boy, and a girl with the same colour hair, and a sour expression.

"What about you two?" he asked, "you look like you can rough someone up."

"Reiner Braun," the student replied, "and that's Annie. And yeah, we can rearrange a face or two."

"Fucking delinquents is what they are," Jean muttered.

Erwin nodded. "We'll take you two as well."

Hanji's face was doubtful. "They're just kids, Erwin."

He sighed. "Our situation is dire. If we have extra bodies with experience, we can't ignore it."

"Well then I'm coming too!"

Petra flicked her gaze over to Jean Kirschtein, the last to finally stand. He held one of his hands down against his stomach to hide the trembling. "There's no way I'm going to let Jaeger get all the action."

Levi's eyes flashed. "You think this is a fucking joke?"

Petra raised her hand, cutting Levi off from speaking, and with her soft honey gaze, smiled at Jean. "I could use you on my team," she told him, "if you know how to fight, you can help me protect those who can't protect themselves."

He observed her, his eyes narrow and suspicious, but when he found no hint of mockery or condescending, he sighed roughly. "Alright."

"Fine," Levi clipped, "now go."

Moblit and Auruo stretched, and rounded up the students, leading them from the room.

"Oh, and Petra?"

"Yes, captain?"

Levi threw her a small smile. "Don't fuck up."

She returned the expression, accepting his way of wishing her good luck. "You either."

"Alright, alright," Auruo huffed, holding open the door with a decided lack of patience, "you two can fuck when we get home. We've got work to do."

She smiled again, ducking under her comrade's outstretched arm and into the corridor. How could she have known that those would have been the last words they would have uttered to each other before everything changed. If she had known, if she had even a clue as to how she was to lose him, she would have thought of something better to say.

**xxxx**

**Author's Notes: **I didn't realize how long this chapter was so I guess "the incident" is going to be split over two chapters (but hopefully no more), leaving this a 4 or 5 chapter fic. Man I need some self control when it comes to writing.

Oh and this AU came to fruition before we had _any_ idea of what sort of dude Kenny is so my characterization of him is based on speculation from when all we knew about him was that he was trying to kill Levi. The trouble with writing fics about an incomplete series I suppose hahaha


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